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Last summer I had fun trying to catch little waves on a body board. I'm wondering if I could get a cheapo surfboard and try standing up this year. There are eBay cheap jobs for £150, that's about my budget.
I should stress the following points:
I don't want to get 'into' it or get 'serious'
I am just mucking about on a beach
It will be a family beach holiday likely in West Wales so beaches will be chosen based partly on waves for my kids who will want to body board and partly based on sand, rockpools and ice cream facilities.
In MTB terms this would be like going on a green or blue trail with the kids.
What about something like this? I'm 180cm tall and a out 90kg, and fairly coordinated. I can skateboard and ski without falling off.
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/233635882681
Definitely the way to go, if you're not using it frequently and want something for family use they're easier to get up on and importantly dont do you damage if they hit you when you fall off. We've got three soft boards between me and the kids, as we only surf on a couple of hols a year being smack bang in the centre of the country. Are there any surf shops down that way you could drop into and ask their advice, might even have used boards?
They are fine, plenty on the beaches. At your size you may want slightly bigger if you want to catch waves
The next step up is surf worx which is made by alder, regarded as very good for not a lot more and hold their resale value better
Go big, bigger boards catch waves easier. A small board sinks under your weight and the wave doesn't lift it, big boards don't sink and get pushed allong by the smallest swell. In fact have you considered a SUP? It's like the e-bike of surfing.
A decent compromise between the beginner foam boards and more expensive epoxy boards are the ones made by Bic (the people that make pens!). Rather than being a foam blank covered in fiberglass they're made like bike helmets with the shell molded first then the foam added inside. Makes them cheaper to mass produce whilst being tougher but still lightweight. I bought one when I lived in Saltbrun but haven't used it since moving back South 😟
The downside of Bic is they're the surf equivalent of a Carrera/Voodoo.
A decent compromise between the beginner foam boards and more expensive epoxy boards are the ones made by Bic (
+1
I got one of them for my occasional trips in Devon. Very hardwearing. I still recall the cretinous fool in the surf shop decrying it and saying I should have got a custom board made.
WTF, how is a 5 day surfer going to know what customisations he needs on a surfboard?
Also, as above, go bigger than 8ft (IMHO, as a complete newb)
7ft is probably a bit small for you. I'd go for something around 8ft with plenty of float. Something like this maybe -
A Bic is a good shout actually. My first board was a 7ft 9in Bic Malibu. It was tatty but it got me started and was indestructible. I still have it in the garden for pop-up practice between trips to the beach.
Bic do an 8ft 4, suited lots of my mates (who could stand up for somewhere between 0 and 15 seconds)
Good, I was expecting to be shot down in flames as I usually am. I'm sure I'll fall off a lot, but what the hell. I've seen surfing lessons being given, so I'm obviously going to be fine 🙂
In fact have you considered a SUP?
Yes, I have. But they are even more mega large. I'd have loved one when we were on Mull a few years ago - flat water and lots of places to explore, but I might prefer to just do normal surfing on a typical beach.
If a board is too big, can it still be used? My daughter will no doubt badger me for a go on it, she is 60kg and about 150cm.
The Bic ones are twice the price though, that makes it too expensive given how 'serious' I want to be.
8 foot is too short, 9 ft 6 standard malibu size would be better, c 23 inches wide (as crucial as the length). Might be worth hiring a few different sorts before buying, you wouldn't want to be instantly frustrated by the limitations of a foamy or softboard. I imagine they wouldn't be all that easy to turn.
If a board is too big, can it still be used? My daughter will no doubt badger me for a go on it, she is 60kg and about 150cm.
Yes, you just slip further down the easy to catch waves Vs maneuverability scale (until you hit the point where it's physically too big to get your arms round to paddle. Think about it like long/low/slack bikes with wider bars, they're great for helping anyone go fast, but they still need to fit.
At the other end of the scale, tiny little boards are the surf equivalent of a BMX.
Yes, I have. But they are even more mega large. I’d have loved one when we were on Mull a few years ago – flat water and lots of places to explore, but I might prefer to just do normal surfing on a typical beach.
You can surf, you just start standing up rather than prone.
I would also agree that 8' is too short for your usecase. Other than transport/storage there's no real disadvantage for what you want from getting something >9' and using that.
That said, most beaches with surfable waves will have some sort of surf school you can rent a board from for a tenner a pop. A lot less hassle than lugging your own out there and storing it etc, and you'll get free tips as to the best part of the beach to surf on. I'd probably go down that route for now, and if you find yourself loving it look at a board (probably a bic\pop out, rather than a foamie) for next year
have you considered a SUP? It’s like the e-bike of surfing.
I like this line 🙂
The trouble is that the likes of me, who may be shite and getting shiter but has been surfing for decades and owned many many boards, is that I know bugger all about big cheap foam boards which is what the OP clearly needs. But I would say this:
- if you're messing about in the water where other folks could be about, go foamie.
- if your kids are having a go, go foamie.
I think the reason my kids never got into surfing is a result of being clonked once too often on the head by a fiberglass board. All the more reason not to buy a Bic, which are slightly heavier when they land on your head.
Size does matter, but it's not really length that counts so much as volume. A thick 8' would be fine for most folks.
Last point: it is possible to surf well on a foamie. Last year on a reef near Bundoran with well o overhead waves, a couple of guys paddled out on blue foamies and proceeded to surf rings round us (I mean they were shit hot locals but still...).
Good points, I am safety conscious and I do not want me, my daughter or any of the other rank noobs in the noob section of the beach getting clonked.
this is the one I bought for the kids
https://www.secretspot.co.uk/3618/products/surfworx-8ft-0-hellcat-mid-blue.aspx?currency=GBP&chosenAttribute=32610&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIoLGjwL-46gIVj-vtCh1X3QUlEAQYBiABEgI-LvD_BwE
they are standing up on it no issues, and they love sitting on it in tandem and riding waves
shop had a very high opinion of them, good stiffening, good shape, plenty of float and probably the best value "fun" board, apparently the short boards are really rated
it's too small for me but I'm 125kg, (didn't stop me trying) you will probably get away with it if you are happy not getting every wave and working on your paddling and positioning
also worth getting a decent leash, the one that comes with it is OK but as it's the thing that keeps it attached to the kid it was something I was happy to spend more on
I’d probably go down that route for now, and if you find yourself loving it look at a board (probably a bic\pop out, rather than a foamie) for next year
The foamies are so good these days and cheaper than a bic I think this is now outdated advice
So, if my simple physics model is accurate, I need more litres of displacement than I weigh in kg, right? I'd think that I need quite a bit more though - I want to be riding on the surface not in it..?
Just to give you another option, stick with the bodyboaring as well. They're not just for bouncing around in the foam and you can progress pretty quickly.
Get a softtech board if you can they are great, I used one last week and have a few boards of shapes and sizes and it was a total surprise. You can catch most waves it turns easily so you can progress and ideal for kids as well.
So, if my simple physics model is accurate, I need more litres of displacement than I weigh in kg, right? I’d think that I need quite a bit more though – I want to be riding on the surface not in it..?
it's a compromise for any surfer plus you want your kids to be able to use it as well, bigger boards do well in small surf, as it gets bigger or messier or the wave face steeper they can be more difficult to get out and then get up on. Too big catches the wind as well.
9 foot foamies are a chunk more in cash and great if you want a log for surfing and cross stepping, too big for kids mucking about IMHO
A Bic or similar hard board isn't for kids, they will hurt either themselves or others
Loads of people are using the type in your original link and doing well on them, the surfworx is a step up in design and materials, if I ever decide to go for a shorter log I'd be looking at one of theirs. Both are fine for holiday surfers, the decision is about the size more than anything
So, if my simple physics model is accurate, I need more litres of displacement than I weigh in kg, right? I’d think that I need quite a bit more though – I want to be riding on the surface not in it..?
kinda, but that only matters when you're not planing - I can easily surf a 25l board if the waves are nice. Wider is more stable (more important than length) - but my longboard is probably >100l (a really nice 9'6 bilbo).
https://surfshopsaustralia.com.au/longboards-surfboard-volume-guide/
you could have a play with that.
plus these for your bodyboarding when your arms are knackered
https://www.circle-one.co.uk/product/bodyboard-swim-fins-asymmetrical/
Just to give you another option, stick with the bodyboaring as well. They’re not just for bouncing around in the foam and you can progress pretty quickly.
I have some fins. The thing is my bodyboard is too big, so I'd have to replace it with another one and if I'm going to spend cash I might want to try something different. Always fancied a go at surfing. Ok so they are a lot less practical and big to carry around...
Just be careful you don't get hooked. As that can change your life man, swear to god. Just not necessarily for the better.
Ignore the people telling you to go super wide and big. Boards that big are just a pig to handle. I’ve got a 9’2” log and haven’t touched it since I got a 8’0 mid length.
Any foamie type board over 7ft will have enough volume to float you and catch whitewater waves. Unlikely you’ll be surfing green waves for a while. For messing around at the beach in small surf and with the kids, I’d probably get one of those alder boards. Don’t need to look after it, worry about it dinging it etc. and the guy who lives a couple of doors down from me works at alder...
In fact, anyone want to buy a karma log?
When you ride a 10'4" a 9'2" is a performance board
I got a Bic reccommended many times when I was looking for my first board in similar circumstances (had a few lessons, loved it, live nowhere near the sea and wanted something cheap). Alternatively, speak to shops/hire places when you're on holiday. Nearly all of them have stuff that might be ex-display/ex-hire they're getting rid of. I've been tempted a number of times when I've been on holiday but a) 3 boards is quite enough for someone who lives in Halifax and b) I'm not good enough to own 1 board let alone 3 🙂
Its the smell of wet suits and coconut sex wax that triggers some kind of impulse in me to open my wallet and buy things.
My newest purchase next to my first board. The small one very quickly highlighted my weak areas. Namely paddle strength, balance, flexibility and an idea of what I am doing.
Another thing to consider is that I don't want to look ATGNI as I constantly fall off some expensive item. I want to look like someone just mucking about.
This is my old faithful. If the waves are small then this comes out. It's a heavy old beast but we've had some good times together.
don't worry. you won't.
Personally, I would not go down the bic/NSP route.
1) they are not as stable as foamies
2) they still can get dinged, take on water etc
3) not as safe for kids
4) Not as fun!
Foam boards have come along way since the Swell blue and yellow square railed numbers and you can have a lot of fun on them even as you progress.
Foam boards are pretty buoyant so I'd have thought 8ft would be fine, but in all honesty I wouldnt get too hung up on it, you'll have fun whatever.
I must admit I keep looking at a resin board, Karma etc. But then reality kicks in and I realise for 4+ weeks a year that the Softech's are great for what we need them for, the instructor we book in with each year down uses them and seemed logical to get what we've used. Original is 8'4 and got a 7'6 last year. Huge amounts of fun.
hah I had one of those orange/white bic minimals as my first board too. Now down to a 5'9 puddlejumper which is a lovely thing all round
Sorry Molgrips to hijack your thread but you have your answer: 8' modern foamie. (I'd personally go with the link big n daft posted: to secret spot as those lads know their stuff).
Anyway, my first shaped board was a bic, kinda. I was in hossegor and keen to move on from my old ex-rental popout, so asked around lads in the shops and the advice was go and see Gerard:
...who I found in his place in an industrial estate at the back of town. Everyone I knew had longboards, so that's what I wanted. Got an orange 2.75m (i.e. 9ft) superfrog not-so-classic progressive. Cringe when I think of the embarrassing questions I asked, like whether it would go in north sea waves etc (it's a flipping longboard for flips sake. It'll go...) Anyway, he had a lot of silverware and funky boards, and was the guy who designed the original shapes for Bic which went on to infest the planet. Quite a claim for a shaper to have.
Not actually surfed a longboard in some years, but the boards are now getting bigger and increasingly these days my boards are barely disguised minimals...
I still don't see how ab 86l board is enough to hold me up if I am paddling out and I weigh 90kg? Surely the entire board has to be in the water which would make it hard to paddle?
Displacement would be the same with a 200l board. But it's not a boat. Look on youtube at surfers paddling tiny boards and they're not all under the water when not planing. Sitting on it part of your arse might be underwater but that's it. Whatever, I'm not selling double glazing here... 🙂
I still don’t see how ab 86l board is enough to hold me up if I am paddling out and I weigh 90kg? Surely the entire board has to be in the water which would make it hard to paddle?
I weigh 30 kg more than you and it didn't sink on me, it just didn't glide fast enough with my pathetic paddling
Get a 8 foot foamie, thank us later
I still don’t see how ab 86l board is enough to hold me up if I am paddling out and I weigh 90kg? Surely the entire board has to be in the water which would make it hard to paddle?
you are over-complicating a simple decision. any foamie will be buoyant enough to float you.
Jam bo x 100.
you are over-complicating a simple decision. any foamie will be buoyant enough to float you.
I dunno, I think we can get this at least to "what foamie works best in the barrel?" What foamie for towing Eileen's may be a step too far.
@molgrips I've got an old 9'6" custom Mal that is really good beach break board and will catch everything. You can have it for nowt if you want to collect. I live near Leeds.
It's one of many boards I own and I am being encouraged to empty out the garage!
Dammit, after I've bought a motorbike thanks to weeksy's threads, I'm going to have to get a surf board.
I live in berkshire, have a tiny car and far too many summer hobbies as it is.
@molgrips I’ve got an old 9’6″ custom Mal that is really good beach break board and will catch everything. You can have it for nowt if you want to collect. I live near Leeds.
If molgrips doesn't take this up I can offer a new forever home with a 10'4" and a surfworx for company and a guaranteed trip to Croyde, Staunton, and Puts in August
Very tempting olddog, will have to see if I can make the trip as it's a long old way. On the other hand, post lockdown I might just do it for the change of scenery!!
No worries. It's been taking up space in my garage for years so just let me know.
So 9'6 is huge. I could get it in the roof rack, but can I get it on the roof rack AND four bikes?
So 9’6 is huge. I could get it in the roof rack, but can I get it on the roof rack AND four bikes?
I very much doubt you'd get any surfboard and 4 bikes on a roofrack
This thread is making me want to go surfing. My lovely Nigel Semmens mini mal hasn't been in the water for more than 15 years 🙁
Surfboard and one bike?
Surfboard and one bike?
That should be doable
A 9ft 6in will just fit in a SWB T5 if you poke the nose through the front seats.
I may be after a surfboard but I draw the line at a T5.
Was out at Belhaven today, some good waves today.
Youngest (15) on a BIC board said she had forgotten how good surfing is!
No standing up though, I had a go. I am definitely too heavy for the board, so was pondering a foamie or a SUP.
I could get it in the roof rack, but can I get it on the roof rack AND four bikes?
What you need is a bodyboard...
Ironically, my next surf purchase is likely to be a hand plane and some Dafin kicks....
...and after a shocker last night on the east coast, I'm going to sell my Rob Lion 6' 4" bonzer. Never liked it, sorry Rob. Was having a really shit session until I swapped for a 7'6" mimimal (call a board what it is), whereupon I could do no wrong. I am unquestionably on my way back to a big beginner's board.
I am unquestionably on my way back to a big beginner’s board.
Nah just go longer, get into nose riding and cross stepping and make comments about kids who "don't get it"
@olddog - I am in Leeds and have been (idly) looking for a big board for paddle boarding/trips to the coast with the kids .... let me know if the offer is transferrable and not taken up!
Happy for whoever to take the board. Will not work as a paddle board though, it's a proper custom mal.
Surf's really well for such a big board, fine for beginners in small surf but I've ridden it in overhead surf when I turned up wrongly gunned.
I'll post some pictures when I can be arsed to drag it out of the garage.
How much does this thing weigh? I'm still interested, just working out how I can transport the thing on family holidays.
What's the easiest way to post photos?
In fact, anyone want to buy a karma log?
Ooo. What are the dims?
What’s the easiest way to post photos?
Go to postimage.com upload and get a link, come back here and click on IMG...
Alternatively I'll swing by and take it off your hands sight unseen and weight unknown and throw in a pint of creme de menthe*.
This is so I can start work on my cross dressing stepping, nose riding and soul arching, and whatever else you;ew meant to do whilst standing there on a tanker.
* Virtual.
Here we go. It weighs about 10 kg. Photos against family hatch for scale. I have a fin for it, but missing the screw plate that attaches it, but a quick Google suggests they are easily found for less than a fiver. I haven't got a spare leash so you'd need to get your own. It's in very used condition!! But works fine, the damage on the tail could do with being repaired, it's pretty easy to do ypurself, but tbh gaffer tape works pretty well!
https://www.instagram.com/p/CCYw6Y-hPsU/?igshid=1mud0df4z5bbu
https://www.instagram.com/p/CCYxbSIhNaX/?igshid=dpxtairrbmh6
https://www.instagram.com/p/CCYxA0WBRNc/?igshid=1p8ecm9upo3yv
Please don’t ‘fix’ it with Gaffa tape, it’s not waterproof enough and it’ll just take on water and get even heavier. Even solarez would be preferable (get a UV torch to cure it properly)
Ooo. What are the dims?
9’4 I think but I doubt I’ll actually sell it. In fact I don’t think I’ve ever sold a surfboard, which may be why there are about 9 in the garage at the last count and I’m sure I have a couple more at a mates house.
I don’t think I’ve ever sold a surfboard, which may be why there are about 9 in the garage at the last count and I’m sure I have a couple more at a mates house.
I have a shed where they go to die. I think I've got about eight.
I will surf them again. And if not my son is going to have an awesome quiver to pick from in a few years time...
Dimensions are good for me, plenty of float an the tail repair not too hard
Ok so Leeds is too far for me. Sorry to mess you about.
However if any of you hoarders are closer to me in South Wales I'd be keen to help you liberate some space. I'll pay.
No worries molgrips. There must be loads of boards on garages doing nothing that could be passed on. I have 5 others, including two 9+ longboards and only ever one of the longboards and one other.
BignDaft you were next in the queue...
Facebook groups seem to be where the majority of second hand boards shift.
Olddog
Thanks, does Monday evening suit?
I have a big seafins single that will fit this well
I'll try and pm you
Molgrips, you get the odd bargain on fleabay, there are a few Facebook groups but the ones I am a member of have all gone really quiet, there was a guy who ran some form of board exchange but he stopped.
If I don't get on with it I'll post and see if you can intercept me on the way home from N Devon
That would work for me, thanks. When are you going?
Travelling back on the 29th August, obviously if I'm surfing like Gerry Lopez on it I'll be keeping it, if I'm thrashing around like a paddle steamer go nowhere it's yours
It's a good board, pretty easy to get on with in any surf. Deserves to be used
See you Monday
9’4 I think but I doubt I’ll actually sell it. In fact I don’t think I’ve ever sold a surfboard, which may be why there are about 9 in the garage at the last count and I’m sure I have a couple more at a mates house.
😆
Secret Spot are out of stock of everything cheap. How about this?
Isn’t that where you started?
Yes, but I'm about to buy it now after reading the thread in detail 🙂